(Go Rich Muny! TID!)

It seems we are indeed making a strong showing for this month’s YouTube Town Hall question; there are actually two online poker questions — one about the Barton Bill (H.R. 2366: the Internet Gambling Prohibition, Poker Consumer Protection, and Strengthening UIGEA Act of 2011) and the other about the Campbell Bill (H.R. 1174:  the Internet Gambling Regulation, Consumer Protection, and Enforcement Act). However, I’m wondering if either would be selected for YouTube debate, because as far as I can tell, the poker questions are the only ones attached, by number, to specific bills. My guess is few Members would use their YouTube airtime to pimp a single bill that hasn’t even been heard yet in committee . They’re looking to address concepts that may or may not mean something to voters — like freedom and fiscal sensibility, or something grand-sounding like “comprehensive tax reform” — not specific legislation with amendments still being written and a name that won’t even fit on Twitter.

But still, whether or not the online poker questions make it to the next round you can be sure Members are at least taking note of what voters are <s>thinking</s> thumbing.

Dear dan,

Poker and the Youtube Town Hall

PPA needs your help to place the issue of licensing and regulating online poker squarely in front of our members of Congress. Each month, citizens from around the country are asked to vote on a variety of questions submitted to the new YouTube Townhall meeting website.  Each month, the question that receives the most votes will be answered by members of Congress – one in support and one opposed to the issue – in short YouTube videos.

We need poker to be the top question for this month.

Please take a moment and click here to go to the YouTube Townhall website and vote thumbs up for the submitted question:

With the downgrade of the US credit rating and bleak economic outlook, shouldn’t the federal government consider supporting new revenue sources “without raising taxes” as authorized by H.R. 2366, a bill to license and regulate online poker in the US? 

You only have a short time to vote for this question, so please do so now and don’t forget to send this to all your poker buddies asking them to do the same.

This week Annie Duke and friends are trying to sell wedding dresses. Not sure who it was that bought one from her, but all it took was a simple phone call to get someone to pony up a “main event”. And with that, the non-poker world was introduced to some poker jargon and an example of how it can apply in their everyday lives:

“main event” = $10,000

Who knew!?! I mean we did, but now we can expect Joe the Non-poker-playing Plumbers everywhere to be saying things like, “I got in a little fender bender and my lawyer got me a main event’s worth of repairs!” or “Did you see that guy on Price is Right, Darryl? He spun that wheel and landed on a dollar to win a main event!”

Awesome … go poker! Will be curious, though, to see if Annie Duke will be backing half the field in this year’s WSOP main event.

UPDATE: It was Perry Friedman (and his bride-to-be) who made a main event charitable donation in exchange for a bridal gown.

MORE UPDATE: I am now much more likely to read Annie’s blog on Mondays than I was before.

Good stuff. Goes well with FoxNews in the background: PokerRoad Radio, with Annie Duke

UPDATE: OK, I listened … and though I’m not sure I cared to know so many details about Annie Duke-Joe Reitman sex, she does answer some questions revealing why she didn’t participate with 60 Minutes (her claims of their falsehoods to lure her into the story seem totally believable to me — media people do say these things — though I do wonder could they have gone with a more regulation-oriented storyline had she or Paul Legget gone on camera), why she is indeed so confident about AP/UB/Cereus’ commitment to running an honorable business, why she remains a loyal face for the brand (it’s not the money), and how she wants to see Russ Hamilton burn in non-Atheist hell.

She also dances around questions about her rumored appearance on the upcoming season of The Apprentice in a way that semi-confirms she has intimate knowledge of a show beginning in March with a finale in May.